About CGO

Community Growth Options (CGO) is a multi-year project funded by the McKnight Foundation and designed to deliver to small, fast-growing communities financial and other assistance for community planning, ordinance development and implementation.

The project is implemented by 1000 Friends of Minnesota and their University of Minnesota partners, the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs and the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.

CGO recognizes that Minnesota is growing rapidly. Many small communities have a vision of maintaining their community character, open spaces, and rural lifestyle, while also enjoying the economic development that growth could bring. Being concerned for the future of these unique places, CGO seeks to build capacity for ongoing planning and implementation in ten growing communities over a six-year period. In the end, the success of this project will be a replicable model of planning that specifically addresses the unique challenges facing small growing communities.

Get more information about CGO’s goals and guidelines.